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Thursday, August 29, 2013

Project Cain by Geoffrey Girard

When offered to review this novel by Simon&Schuester, I read the plot and thought that it sounded quite juvenile, however I then read the whole summary and there was a name drop: Jeffrey Dahmer's.
That's when it got spicy.

So basically, this novel covers the story of 16 year olf Jeff who discovers he was constrructed in a laboratory seven years ago as part of a top secret government project named Project Cain. Also, he was constructed by the DNA of serial killer, Jeffrey Dahmer. Oh and there are a bunch more clones running around...and they don't just have Jeff Dahmer's DNA to work with. So...yeah.

Some people may find this story slightly sickening but I thought it was great, it's a story. Not only that but from an outsider's point of view, it seemed to me like the author payed great attention respecting the victims of these murderers, which is something you tend to forget when reading fiction. There's also a large discussion on conspiracies and Lord knows conspiracies fuel my imagination! God, I love a good conspiracy, its a good adrenaline rush.

Here are the two main reasons I enjoyed this novel much more than I probably should have

a) The story is twisted. This is a story about teenagers with an urge to kill, and not just kill peacefully. They want blood and at times, much much worse. If you don't have an a) tolerance or b) interest for any of those things, this will not be the book for you. However, being a big fan of Battle Royale and having the Hunger Games as one of the first books I reviewed for this blog, I really don't have a problem with that type of story. In fact, it's kind of my favourite breed. Sorry, not sorry.

b) I find it incredibly fascinating to learn about serial killers and their motives. Not to glamorize them, but to understand their psyche, much like this novel succeeded in doing. There were mini biographies for each killer mentioned which helped you understand various characters. After some time, I was able to recognize which killer manifested into which character. Educational? Yes. Fascinating? Even more.

ok, so what did I actually think about this book? IT WAS FLIPPING GOOD OK. Being completely honest, I have only read a handful of books this year (tsk tsk tsk) and I struggled to read many of them. But reading Project Cain brought me back to my prime reading time in grade ten and nine when I had all the time in the world. I would read in the bus, in class, and before going to bed (THIS IS A MISTAKE I DO NOT RECOMMEND AT ALL). This book was exactly what a YA novel should be. Gripping, fast paced, creative, engaging. My only bone to pick with this book would probably be that I felt the author took the easy way out at some points. Specifically, when dealing with the deaths of characters. It might be my new found love for Game Of Thrones, but I believe that there must come a time when an author should drop the axe once a character has outlived their believable lifeline. I feel like it is juvenile not to, which brings me back to the beginning of this post. But I will say this, this story is not for children (my 9th grade self just stuck her tongue out at me...she would have adored this book), it is much much darker than you think it is.

Interestingly enough, there is also a "mature" version of this book that you can pick up although I'm not sure whether or not the outcome would be the same.

If you find yourself agreeing with my points a) and b), you should definitely pick up a copy of Project Cain.

Note: After some GoodReads exploring, I've noticed some controversy surrounding Geoffrey Girard and a reply he made to a blogger who reviewed his novel. Not to get in the middle of things, but I read the post and I read his reply and I didn't see the big deal? Obviously, I wash't targeted so my opinion isn't actually valid but this is my blog and I felt like throwing my two cents in (DUH).

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